When will we transition to the digital wallet?
Posted by joe
Technology available today gives consumers access to “digital wallets.” Examples of this include waving a key fob or cell phone in front of a reader to pay for a good or service. While I think that geeks (like me) look forward to this, I believe most consumers remain reluctant to give up their cash and credit cards. A few recent articles on the topic suggest that maybe the tipping point for electronic payment in the U.S. may arrive soon.
A push from Starbucks cannot hurt. Starbucks recently invested in Square (see “Starbucks and Square to Team Up,” New York Times, August 8, 2012) and will no doubt push it in its stores. If you want a more detailed lay of the land, see “The death of cash,” (Fortune, July 9, 2012). If you are a glutton for knowledge about this topic, you can also check out “What’s In Your Wallet? Wait, You Don’t Need One ” (NPR, All Tech Considered, August 16, 2012).
How many of you use your cell phone or a key fob to pay for goods and services? Would you be able to get by without cash today? Are you comfortable moving to a cash-free world? Do you think your parents are ready for this?
Tags: innovation
This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 22nd, 2012 at 12:44 pm and is filed under Consumer behavior. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
As a user of this so called digital wallet, I agree completely with what is being said. With the way our society is headed, which is towards a digital age, I believe within a couple decades cash will almost become obsolete. Music, movies, and even books are all becoming digitalized. You can get what you want in the blink of an eye in the palm of your hand. So why wouldn’t you be able to pay for something in the blink of an eye. It only makes sense that money is the next thing to become digitalized. In regards to Starbucks, they are brilliant for getting a jump on things. Their target market is the young and innovative, who are the ones who typically get into the latest technology. This is great marketing strategy for Starbucks in reaching out to their most loyal customers and bringing the newest and coolest way to pay for your latte. After all, who can say they pay for their latte with their phone. The fact is Starbucks is one step ahead of their competitors. That is one of many reasons people continue to pay a little more for a cup of coffee at Starbucks. I believe we will be seeing other stores start incorporating this way of paying for products very soon.
August 30th, 2012 at 10:29 pmWhile i agree with Captain America that America is heading in that direction, i believe that a complete switch to a virtual wallet is a long way off. My Apprehension in regards to a virtual wallet is that computers and technology fail often, and its one thing to have song, movies,games and coffee accounts crash, and quite another for everything you’ve worked for and all the cash you’ve accrued over a lifetime to vanish over night because the world is digital and computers fail. Hackers would throw a party if we suddenly put every ounce of our being into the hands of technology. We would need tons of new protections added to the functionality of this idea before launching it completely. Cash is safe and comfortable to many people across america you can hold it in your hand and know that it is yours and that it cannot easily be taken away from you, or at least know that your cash is sitting safe and sound in a bank. Another reason why i don’t see this taking off anytime soon is because it is honestly one step closer to “The mark of the beast” and that terrifies people. The next step after a completely digital wallet is a micro chip in your hand or on your forehead that you can use absolutely anywhere, and while that might seem dramatic, i think that is a very real statement of how many americans feel. I think in the long run this is a great idea but in this present Era, i don’t think the software or the public is ready for this radical change.
September 6th, 2012 at 7:25 pm